GARLIC FOR RECIPES INGREDIENT

NEVER FORGET GARLIC IN YOUR COOKING

Let’s speak about garlic or “Bawang Putih” in Indonesian. As well as red onion, I never forget using garlic in my cooking. This kind of onion is commonly used as spice in the household kitchen or in the famous restaurants. The clove of garlic is covered by a layer skin as soft as a tissue. It is pungent and has a unique smell, we will recognize it easily when someone is frying some garlic as a cooking ingredient.

Physically, garlic is kind of a plant with white roots which shape is tuber layer, identical with red onion. It is usually planted in the mountains area field which obtain sufficient sunlight. Garlic contains of sulfur compounds that may become an effective antibiotic.

I love using so many garlic in my food recipes. Especially when I am cooking fried chicken or fishes, because garlic could make my foods more savory and delicious.

Red Onions or Shallots for My Food Recipes

NEVER LEAVE RED ONIONS FOR YOUR DISH INGREDIENT

Red Onion or Shallots or in Indonesian we call it “Bawang Merah” is one kind of spice which shaped like tuber crops. This is very important for my dish, because most Indonesian foods especially for my cooking, I never miss shallots to put in the dish. We can say that red onion is the mean spice as one of the flavor in the foods.

We usually use red onion as the mean seasoning in the kitchen to make our foods more delicious. red onion is not only used as cooking spice but it’s really full of benefits. Red onion can be strong anti-oxidant and as a bacteria killer and it could also reduce our intestinal disorders. Some people use red onion to help their children as a fever reliever, nausea, catch a cold. They only pound several red onion and mixing it with coconut oil and put it on the children body, like on the stomach if the children catch cold or on forehead if the children have a fever.

Commonly, red onion lives in the highlands which have a fairly good fertility. There are several different variety of shallots, in Indonesia shallots size is smaller and more rounded with the reddish color. Red onion has characteristics : clumps plant, bulbous layers and pungent. Red Onion is an annual crops which has no stem and it has long green leaves, tube-shaped and pointy toes. In my home town my mother usually use red onion leaves for her cooking but it’s hard to find it in where I live now (Yogyakarta).

I think red onion taste is sweeter than white onion. Fried red onions are very delicious, we can put it in our dish or directly eat it together with warm rice. But be careful if you peel up the red onions, stay away from your eyes or you will cry since red onions can produce steam which will poignant your eyes.

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TAMARIND FOR MY DISH SPICE

 TAMARIND FOR MY COOKING

 

“Asam Jawa “ is tamarind from Java Island. I usually use it in my cooking as a spice in Sayur Asam (Vegetables mixed with another spices and tamarind, just wait for the recipe ^^), stir-fry dish and it also could become a beverage. Javanese Tamarind contains of vitamin A, B and C which very useful for our body. Javanese Tamarind is kind of fruit which has sourness, and commonly used in Indonesian food as a sour taste. If you have ever been eating mpek mpek (kind of food from Sumatra island) you’ll find “cuko” as a sour sauce. The sour taste comes from Tamarind. Hmmm it’s really delicious. This is also my favorite recipe.

Physically, Tamarind tree is big and tall. It always have green leaves because this tree doesn’t run into fallen leaf. The height of this tree is around 30 meters and its stem diameter around 2 meters. The stem skin is grayish brown grey, rough texture, split and grooved vertically. Tamarind fruit has brown color and a hard rind. Usually, we only use its flesh which is soft and has brown color also. Just brewed in the hot water or just put it directly in you cuisine.

Javanese Tamarind has some advantages for our health. It could help us to expedite defecate, treat our cough and improve our circulatory. For a woman, Javanese Tamarind could reduce menstrual pain, eliminate the whitish, for diet program that may help a woman to be more slim, and to prevent us from fall out hair.

We can store Javanese Tamarind easily by getting it in a plastic bag and store it in your refrigerator

The Unique Aroma in Galangal for My Recipes

GALANGAL AND ITS UNIQUE AROMA FOR FOODS

Galangal or “Lengkuas” (in Indonesian) is a rhizome root crops. This is also one of spice that I usually use in my cooking. I use Galangal when I am cooking Javanese curry, rendang, gulai or oseng oseng (vegetables mixed with some ingredients including galangal and stirred with slightly oil. And I like galangal in my fried chicken recipe ingredients. Makes my fried chicken more crunchy ^_^ I’ll the recipe next time.

Galangal has a tree trunk consists of midrib-structure leaf. The shape of its leaves are elliptic. Its flower appear in the peak of the plant. Galangal rhizome tuber is creeping, fleshy, glossy skin, coarse fibrous, and has a unique aroma.

The part of galangal that can be used as a spice foods is its rhizome. Not only Indonesian people who generally use this herb plant for cooking but also giving a food flavor for another Asia country such as Laos, China, Malaysia, India and Thailand. This spice contains essential oil functioning as anti-microbial and anti-bacterial. The essential oil in galangal could become natural preservative in our cooking.

For our health, galangal has so many benefits. The essential oil contained in galangal has important function in traditional medicine. It could cure and treat several diseases for instance: catch cold, nausea, pain reliever, cough and to increasing the appetite. And this plant also often use to treat skin diseases caused by fungi.

In my foods recipe, galangal is giving delicious aroma. I always use galangal in my stir-fry cooking or in my cooking that use coconut milk. Just peeled and crushed it and put it in your dish, hmmm yummy ^^

KENCUR FOR MY RECIPE INGREDIENT

 "KENCUR" OR GREATER GALINGALE FOR MY SPICE FOOD

Greater Galingale or “Kencur” in Indonesian, is a root crop resembling ginger used as spice and medicine. “Kencur” is a plant with soft stem without wood or only have a very minimum wood texture. It grows in the low and medium land with temperature between 26^oC until 30^oC.

We can plant “Kencur” in our garden or only in the potted plants. Beside planted in the yard or garden, as a life pharmacy it is very beautiful if we could make it as an ornamental plant.

“Kencur” usually used as a spice in Indonesian foods, such as urap (vegetables mixed with grated coconut and other spices), lotek (vegetables mixed with mashed nuts, chilies and other spices), etc. It could give fresh flavor and has characteristic flavor but only use it slightly do not add too much “kencur” in your dish because it will spoil the taste on your dish. While as a medicine plant, “kencur” known as a medicine for several diseases like influenza, catch cold, headache, cough, etc and the last it is also very famous as one of “Jamu” (traditional medicine) ingredient.

Ginger for My Recipe Ingredients

 GINGER FOR FOODS

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is herbal plant which often used by South East Asia People specially for Indonesian people. Ginger is a native plant from China and India. Ginger root is widely used as culinary purposes and medicinal materials.

I usually use Ginger (in Indonesian we call it as “Jahe”) as one of my recipe ingredient. It can use when I want to make Javanese curry, opor, rendang or fish gulai. When we put ginger in our dish, our cuisine flavor will be more smelly odor and it could reduce the rancidity in the fishes.

This body warmer plant has 3 types that based on its shape, size and rhizome color, to wit small white ginger, big white ginger and red ginger. Ginger which comes from Southeast Asia, commonly is planted in tropical climate and it is known as root tubers plant that has spicy taste and pungent. This plant produces white and red flower buds pack that will be broke in the winter. Because of its beauty and its ability to adapt to hot climates, this plant is often used for landscaping. The stem which is under the soil surface, is forming the gangs which are thick, and colored like the soil. whereas the above ground, grow about 12 inches on the surface and it has green leaves and thin-boned, and the flowers are white or yellowish-green.

Ginger has so many benefit such as : as one of Indonesian ingredients in many kind recipes. Ginger also can be used as beverage like ginger tea or just mix it with hot water and sugar (I called it “Wedang Jahe”), we can also mix it with coffee. As I know ginger also used in the western recipe like ginger cake/biscuit and ginger ice cream, but I haven’t tried it yet.

The ginger storage methods are very important, we can dot by packing the ginger in the cloth or towel and put it inside the plastic bag. Ginger may hold for three weeks in the refrigerator and three months in the freezer.

Ginger is believed could give some benefits for our health. Ginger could reduce arthritic joint pain, degrade cholesterol and thin the blood. Ginger is also useful to cure when some one gets stomach crams, diarrhea, morning sickness for pregnant woman and seasick.

Turmeric for Our Foods and Health

TURMERIC FOR FOODS AND HEALTH 

TURMERIC is herb which could add unique taste in Indonesian food. It could reduce rancidity whenever we process fishes as our dishes. Turmeric gives our food color and it’s rich of benefits.

Turmeric or in Indonesian we call it as “Kunyit” known as a herb for our dish. But the benefits may across our kitchen room. It can be used as cosmetic, textile and medicine ingredients. It’s also recognized as natural food coloring for cheese, mustard and margarine.

Turmeric is a plant root, and we can recognize easily by looking at its red/orange color. This rooted stem may become powder ingredient or it can also be mixed and mashed with another ingredients in Indonesian food. Most of Javanese foods are using turmeric like gulai, Javanese curry, opor or another basic yellow ingredients.

Kunyit or Turmeric is not only used in the dishes, but has been used as a traditional medicine since along time ago. “Jamu” is one of the example. “Jamu” is traditional medicine, and Jamu has become health beverage now days. Its basic ingredient is turmeric and another herbal plants.

Beside as a basic food ingredients, turmeric also has many benefits and useful to relieve various complaints and diseases. The benefits specially come from its curcumin content. Curcumin is a substance which has a play role in property, flavor and color.

There are several turmeric benefits like has anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidants and it could gives protection toward heart attack and stroke since it could reduce the formation of blood clots, protect our liver and help fat digestion by increasing bile production.

About Cooking

 MY SPECIAL MOMENT "COOKING TIME"

Cooking is a very special moment for me. Choosing the ingredients in the market is always challenging. In my hometown, no food without chilies. Every foods are hot hot hot there!  When I moved to Yogyakarta to take a collage, it was very difficult to suit my mouth with Yogyakarta foods which generally are dominated with sweet taste. May be it’s because I used to eat spicy foods. Whereas Yogyakarta is very famous with their sweet taste foods like gudeg, bacem, semur, etc.

 

For me, cooking is not just as a hobby, but more than that, cooking is my daily routine activities. Usually, I cook some foods for my family in the evening after back from my office. But the foods I made is just simple foods, easy to make and practical. Well, there will be a better time when I spend almost a day in my kitchen. In the weekend or in my day off, it’s my special kitchen time. I could make some  complicated cake or foods in my holiday like bread, snack, or anything about new recipes.

 

Do not cook with anger, grudge or another bad feeling, you won’t get the best result if you feel unhappy in your kitchen. Indirectly, our foods will be influenced and will not be appropriate with what we want to make, for example, our foods are salinity, or treacly . I think, we should cook happily, calm, and enjoy it with our heart. Let’s enjoy our kitchen activities, cooking time ^^ so our foods will be hmmmm yummy.

 

In this blog, I only try to share what I know about my hobby and my favorite activities. Okey, let’s make something new !

My Story About Crocheting

About Crocheting

According to Wikipedia.org, Crochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn, thread, or other material strands using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the French word "crochet", meaning hook. Hooks can be made of materials such as metals, woods or plastic and are commercially manufactured as well as produced by artisans. Crocheting also means to make a piece of needlework by looping thread with a hooked needle.

Crocheting is very interesting. The first time I was learning how to crochet a small table cloth, when I was pregnant my little daughter. My pregnancy was three months at time. In my first and second month pregnancy, I was very fussy. There were so many things that I was complaining, morning sickness, nausea and headache. Then in my third pregnancy it was all reduced, and I started feeling bored, wanted to do useful thing which no need my great power. And I found it! Yes, it was crocheting!

It began when I saw one of my friend who was very busy making a cloth from one roll of thread. Then I started thinking, wow it would be funny and cute if I could made something worn by my baby. And my strong willing pushed me to ask how to do that? Could you teach me ? and thank full, she was so kindly giving me guidance how to make basic crochet.

It was hard and difficult for the first time, the yarn was tangled, my fingers were confused linking the yarn. But, since I was so courage to know, at last piecemeal I could do that. I was also learning crocheting symbols or notation by browsing internet or from the books.

As I know, crochet has it basic symbol or basic stitches, America and England version (UK/US or British / American) but I prefer American symbol, I don’t know why, may be because I am accustomed to using that symbol.

                                                   

This is the example that I got from wikipedia.org :

  

Actually, the most important in crocheting is studying the chain / stitch and also the symbol and how to read chart. Our willing to learn about crocheting is also important. “No willing to learn” “no additional ability”. If we could do how to crochet, it must be fun. We can create all things we want, such as hair accessories, sandal, bolero, table cloths, etc. We can use it for our private collection or for sell, it’s very possible, some people will like our creations. Let’s try to make handicrafts by crocheting, who knows we’ll find some interesting inspiration if we success in making one thing by crocheting. Have fun by crocheting!

INTRODUCTION

KONNICIWA, ANNYEONG HASEYO, HELLO :)

It’s my first time writing in this blog ^^ so happy having this chance to start full fill my blog diary. Seem like diary because I just wanna share about what I know, what I like, for instance crocheting, anything about cooking and kitchen. First of all, I would like to say sorry if there are so many mistakes in my writing or posting. Please do leave me a comment so I can correct my mistakes or I’ll give you my best answer if you leave me a question.

Since I come from east Java, foods with so many chilies are the best. No chilies no delicious meals, Japanese says “oishiikunai”, am I right ? There will be so many recipes from my own practice, from my modification. Don’t too worry not all recipes are with chilies ^_^ I’ll share you some kind of delicious meals also.

In my spare time, if I am in a good mood, if I don’t feel so tired, if I am not on “Lazy” mode on, usually I make something from strings by crocheting. It became so interesting for me since I was pregnant my little daughter. Not too hard to crochet something, well “the best effort would give you the best result” , trying something new is so challenging, makes life brighter with our hobby. You can make some cloths, hats, table cloths, etc.

I am just a leaner and I am not too clever actually but I like learning anything, languages (the most I like to learn are Korean and Japanese), cooking and crocheting or others new challenges and knowledge.